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Monday, April 23, 2012

Philly Cheesesteak Duck Rolls

I've been to Philadelphia twice. The first time was in high school. I stayed at Valley Forge for 4 days as part of a AP U.S. History program-- and because I'm a nerd. I did all the usual things, like visiting Washington's headquarters in Valley Forge, the National Constitution Center, Independence Hall, seeing our good ol' Liberty Bell and of course, having my first ever authentic Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich! I would post up a picture of it, but I somehow lost all my photos from that trip in the midst of multiple computer crashes. Thanks Windows. (Back up all your photos!) As simple as they are, Philly Cheesesteak Sandwiches are a gift from heaven. Really! This was 5 years ago, and I'm still talking about it. Perhaps it tasted so good because I was actually IN Philadelphia, with the "Rocky Steps" and our U.S. Constitution's birth nearby. Regardless, it was a treat to remember.

As fate would have it, I returned to Philadelphia last year to blog for the AT&T National golf tournament. But this time, I was 21-- let's just say that my second experience was quite different from the first. No, I didn't have a Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich on this visit. I had Philly Cheesesteak Egg Rolls, and they were out of this world! If you visit Philly, check out the Continental Midtown. Their food was amazing. I have yet to visit Gettysburg though. One day, Rick and I will go and walk those sacred grounds. And we would barely utter a word. Who knows what we will hear? Perhaps a silence. Perhaps a voice. Perhaps many voices. But we will be honored, nonetheless.

Anyway, here is my rendition of the Continental's Philly Cheesesteak Egg Rolls. Instead of beef, we used wild duck breasts, sliced thinly and cooked with onion, scallion and Worcestershire sauce. The mixture was then stuffed in egg roll wrappers along with provolone, and fried to a cheesy perfection.

Benjamin Franklin would approve. I bet he wished he were eating these while flying his little kite.Does anyone else find this portrait of Franklin mildly odd? But it cannot be denied that he looks rather kick-a**. Must be the beaver hat.-Jen

1. Slice duck breasts against the grain thinly. Watch for shot and discard parts with blood shot. The pieces we have here look so light on the outside because they have been brined. You should try it. It really makes a big difference. To brine, click here.

2. Heat 1 tbs. olive oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Saute sliced onion until translucent, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle a little salt over onion to help draw out moisture.

Add the sliced duck breast and green onion, and saute until the meat is browned. Add 3-4 splashes of Worcestershire, salt and pepper, to taste.

Drain the mixture of all liquids and allow to cool. Hot liquid will ruin the egg roll wrappers when assembling.

3. Lay 1 egg roll wrap on a clean, dry surface, with one corner directly pointing at you. It should look like a diamond from where you stand. Place 1 provolone slice in the middle and then some of the cooled duck mixture horizontally across the cheese slice. Be careful not to overfill.

Egg roll wrappers are pretty easy to find in American grocery stores. We bought ours at Ralph's.This brand was quite easy to work with.

Tightly fold up the corner closest to you over the filling. Brush some beaten egg onto the two side corners and fold them in. Make sure everything is neat and tight, or else bubbles and leaking will form when you fry.

Brush the top corner with egg and roll up the entire egg roll. Make sure everything is well sealed. You don't want oil getting inside.

This is what it should look like. Repeat until you run out of duck mixture.

4. Heat 1-2 inches of oil in a saucepan, just enough so the egg rolls don't touch the bottom of the pan. To test if the oil is ready, drop in a tiny piece of egg roll wrap. If floats, bubbles up and starts frying right away, it's ready.

9 comments:

These look amazing! My husband is a HUGE meat eater and would just drool at the sight of these. I love putting a twist on classic dishes and these just take the cake, thank you so much for posting this. :)

I'm a first time duck cooker and made this dish last night. Absolutely awesome entree! I brined in salt water for 24 hours because I couldn't wait to make this. After I finely sliced the duck breast, I ran under cold water to try and leech the remaining blood out. I sauteed the onions and duck in butter instead of oil. All the rest was same. Soo good, not gamey at all, and was extremely full after three rolls! Totally recommend this disch, and keep them coming Jen!

Hi Jeff. Thank you for your nice comments. We are so happy that you liked the recipe! I have a lot of trouble enjoying wild duck, so brining is the way to go. Again, thanks for following our blog. We appreciate all the support we can get! -Jen

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Rick and Jen

Food for Hunters was created to provide both hunters and non-hunters different ways to prepare and consider game. Rick and I have been at this for a little over 5 years now, and we’re proud to say that our blog has grown and evolved into its very own. For us, “Food for Hunters” does not simply mean the tidbits and morsels we consume from a plate. “Food” can take on other meanings—it’s the fuel that feeds our hearts, thoughts and souls as hunters and human beings. With that being said, please enjoy our recipes and our occasional ramblings on food, the outdoors and local curiosities.